I traded my tires when they were basically brand new, too. I got Cooper Discoverer AT3s in 235. They were $150 a piece, the tire shop credited me $100 each for my stockers and Cooper had a $70 rebate on them, so total cost was only $130. I'm very pleased with the tires and have owned several sets. I don't have any issues with noise related to them that I notice, but if something like that is still more aggressive than you're looking for you might try something else. Someone can chime in, but there's a middle of the road Geolander that's really popular with Subarus.

 

You got 100 a pop per tire for your factory ones? Local Discount Tire told me 50 bucks and said he would only sell them for a few bucks more lol.

 

So on this board everyone is going to recommend some sort of AT tire (and so would I). The issue is that Subaru, made the Onyx variant with 18" wheels because nothing says "off-roady edition" like low profile tires. You're almost certainly going to need to get 17" wheels which opens up the 235-65-17 size (check that for the 2020 models but I bet it still fits) and a lot of AT options.

I suppose at that point you could just have 17" wheels with ATs and the stock wheels with the stock tires, but I think swapping them will get old quick.

Technically AT tires are by definition not "really agressive" the whole point is a 90/10 on-road/off-road tire for trucks. There are far more aggressive tire designs for dedicated off-road use. Recommendations are going to depend on what you want


Toughest (only LT tire for stock/ish gen5/6 OBs that I know of), chunkiest, coolest-looking on your social media. Also harshest, heaviest, most expensive, biggest MPG hit.
-KO2

Well-reviewed for off-road performance. P-metric (not as tough or as harsh as the KO2).
-Cooper AT3

Severe snow rated ATs (not going to match with real snows, but a big step up from all seasons). I have used the Dynapro (current) and the Rotiiva (former)
-Geolander GO15 (don't know much about it, reviewed well)
-Rotiiva (Good in the snow, not so much on ice, wears quickly, fairly quiet, little MPG impact, one puncture from a nail, none off pavement)
-Dynapro (Better on ice, wears very slowly, moderate MPG impact, no punctures)

 

Swapping tires isn't bad - you do "own" this car, right? That's a part of it. When I lived in upstate NY, I swapped to dedicated snows each winter. What're a few minutes of your time if you have a jack and a tire iron?

Aside from the snows, I usually always run an AT on my Subarus. I've run the old-style Geolander ATS before and they rock on sand, mud and in snow, but were loud and wore down quickly. I'm currently running Continental Terrain Contacts and they have about 5k ish miles on them and are finally starting to get noisy. Even still, I do really like them and they are very smooth - even at 80-90 mph. I think they're speed rated to more than 100 mph, which is nice. They really come alive on dirt roads.

I agree with Teni - stepping down to a 17" wheel will help.

 

Still loving my Yoko GO15's. Great highway manners, awesome on dirt roads, and capable getting through some decent mud (see recent pictures posted in the Gen4 thread)

 

So now i will add my tire into the mix, the new Falken Wildpeak Trail tire seems to have many size options, discount tire carries them, that's where I acquired them. tire rack didn't yet

 

Okay, so I'm going to be picking up my new Onyx in the next couple of days......I had originally hoped to maybe trade in the all- season tires that come with it and upgrade to ATs, but I've called around and doesn't sound like anybody will take trade-ins. (I've been told that Craigslist would be my best option to get a decent return on the "new" OB tires that came with.) Also, as someone pointed out, the 18" wheels seriously limit my options....and a new set of 17" wheels is what, ~$700-800?? One local dealer said he had the 235/6018 Geolander ATs that fit the 18"ers ($171 each plus $100 mounting/etc.....Amazon has them for $162....) My inclination would be to get the car, then buy the Geolander AT's......people on the OB forum seem to really like them.......then I'll advertise the others on Craiglist. I don't see the sense in spending a fortune for new wheels when I can get the Geo's.....Anybody have any thoughts?

 

I purchased a set of MR118 rims, with Pirelli Scorpion AT's from a major online retailer for a great price. They perform off road quite well, I have climbed some rocky national forest trails with 2 wheels in the air, and they didn't slip around at all. On the highway they are pretty quiet. I still get great gas mileage and they look great too if you need that. I kept my old wheels and tires in case I ever sell or trade the car.

 

They seem to be about the same price as the Geolander ATs, which are also rated really well..... I confess I get a little confused in tire sizes, I have the 18in wheels so I need to be sure they'll fit.

 

I went with 17" rims. there are more tire options in that size.

 

I understand that, but it's a big added expense, especially since there seem to be at least one or two good options with the 18in wheels.

 

So, what did you get? I see all these replies quoting 235/60R18 to replace the 225/60R18. But if you do not want to mess with a lot of other systems and performance, if you go to 235 you also need to go 55, not 60. ie 235/55R18 or with new 17 wheels, 235/65R17.

 

I ordered an Olive Green 2020 Onyx Xt. Delivery date is in 2 weeks. First order of business will be tire upgrade.
I had narrowed it to my top 3 choices In order....

1. Yokohama Geolander A/T G015 ***235/60R18 Part number: 110101528 $170 Amazon
2. Falken Wildpeak AT Trail. ***225/60R18. Part number: 28711826 $150 Amazon
3. Cooper DISCOVERER AT3 4S

After much research, starting with 0 knowledge on the tire and wheels topic...and much struggle to find tires for the 18” rims...
I will attempt to purchase the 225/60R18 Wildpeaks AT Trail from Discount tire, if they aren’t able to get the size I want, then I know Amazon has them.

I opted for the 2nd top choice to save money.
The use of the tire size calculator on 1010Tires.com was very helpful. I looked into possibly downsizing rims to 17. I looked into buying used rims to have winter tires on a set of rims and stock tires on another set. I even thought about 3 sets of rims ( winter, AT’s and everyday use). I looked into Discount Tires and other local tire shops (San Diego). I looked directly at manufacturers websites for accurate sizing info of tires (often the tire shops told me these or those particular tires do not exist in such an such size, but the manufacturer says different).

In the end I opted to get everything I need out of 1 tire... the Wildpeak.
I’m opting for a balance of off-road performance (gravel roads, dirt roads, sand and mud) vs gas efficiency and low noise of every day use, and traction on winter weekend trips to snowed-in mountain towns in SoCal.
This was the way I decided to go today, hopefully it will be the right tire for me.

I know my biggest drawback will be how it drives on ice roads. And because in Cali we have snow chains laws, I plan on carrying and using cables for those days.

 

I ordered an Olive Green 2020 Onyx Xt. Delivery date is in 2 weeks. First order of business will be tire upgrade.
I had narrowed it to my top 3 choices In order....

1. Yokohama Geolander A/T G015 ***235/60R18 Part number: 110101528 $170 Amazon
2. Falken Wildpeak AT Trail. ***225/60R18. Part number: 28711826 $150 Amazon
3. Cooper DISCOVERER AT3 4S

After much research, starting with 0 knowledge on the tire and wheels topic...and much struggle to find tires for the 18” rims...
I will attempt to purchase the 225/60R18 Wildpeaks AT Trail from Discount tire, if they aren’t able to get the size I want, then I know Amazon has them.

I opted for the 2nd top choice to save money.
The use of the tire size calculator on 1010Tires.com was very helpful. I looked into possibly downsizing rims to 17. I looked into buying used rims to have winter tires on a set of rims and stock tires on another set. I even thought about 3 sets of rims ( winter, AT’s and everyday use). I looked into Discount Tires and other local tire shops (San Diego). I looked directly at manufacturers websites for accurate sizing info of tires (often the tire shops told me these or those particular tires do not exist in such an such size, but the manufacturer says different).

In the end I opted to get everything I need out of 1 tire... the Wildpeak.
I’m opting for a balance of off-road performance (gravel roads, dirt roads, sand and mud) vs gas efficiency and low noise of every day use, and traction on winter weekend trips to snowed-in mountain towns in SoCal.
This was the way I decided to go today, hopefully it will be the right tire for me.

I know my biggest drawback will be how it drives on ice roads. And because in Cali we have snow chains laws, I plan on carrying and using cables for those days.

If you didn’t buy your tires yet Che k this link the wildpeak are under $100 each

Tires for Sale | Vehicle Tires for Sale | DWW

All types of tires at unbeatable prices with quick delivery, from winter to summer, offroad to highway, whatever tires you need we have them.

www.discountedwheelwarehouse.com

 

Thanks, Brian10956!
That would save me close to $200!
I ordered the Wildpeak AT Trail 225/60R18 from Discount Tire for $150 each. The next day they call me to tell me it is on back order!
In a week they possibly tell me when I might get them.
So I called DiscountedWheelWarehouse.com.
$100 per tire, but same issue. They checked several vendors and they are all in back order.
It looks like we are all getting the same tires!!!!

 

I received the following email from Yokohama on Nov 21st when I inquired about the G015 being available in a 225/60/18 in the future:

Thank you for your interest in Yokohama Tire.

We just released that size on 11/15. Part # is 110101674. Since the part was just released, it will take some time for these tires to be stocked by dealers. I would allow 6-8 weeks.

 

I went with the WIldPeaks A/T Trails (OEM size) on my OB and we have the GO15's (on 17's) on our Forester and both have been very good on and off-road.